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they receive the divine gifts. And when the body has been divided, the grace has remained undivided, and that small and very tiny relic has the same power as the martyr who has in no way been divided; for the grace that blossoms forth distributes the gifts, measuring its bounty by the faith of those who approach. But not even these things persuade you to praise their God, but you laugh and mock the honor offered to them by all, and you consider it an abomination to approach their tombs. 8.12 Even if all people took offense at these things, still, it was not right for the Greeks alone to be indignant at what was done; for theirs, you see, are the libations and the sacrifices to the dead and the heroes and the demigods and the deified men. For indeed Heracles, who was a man and son of Alcmene and Amphitryon, they declared a god, as they supposed, and numbered him among the other gods. 8.13 But that Plato also knew him to be the son of Amphitryon and not of Zeus, listen to him saying in the Theaetetus: "But when men boast of a list of twenty-five ancestors, tracing them back to Heracles the son of Amphitryon, he thinks it strange pettiness, that because by chance Amphitryon was the twenty-fifth in descent, and the fiftieth from him, he laughs at those who cannot calculate and rid their foolish soul of vanity." 8.14 And Isocrates the orator says thus: "For Zeus begat Heracles and Tantalus, as the myths say, and all believe." Thus did those capable of understanding laugh at the things mythologized by others; but nevertheless, though he was a man and forced to serve Eurystheus, they built him temples and erected altars and honored him with sacrifices and assigned festivals, not only the Spartans and Athenians, but also 8.15 all of Greece and most of Europe. And the disease of this deception crossed over into Asia as well; for in Tyre and in other cities they built very many and very great sanctuaries to him. And not only did they assign him annual festivals, but they also honored him with quadrennial games, and this though they knew him to be a man, and a man not temperate nor one who loved philosophy, but one who lived in licentiousness 8.16 and lewdness. For to pass over all his other intemperance, they say that in one night he lay with fifty virgins, having perhaps accomplished a thirteenth labor; and this is sufficient to show the whole character of his life. And indeed, he met the end of his life before his time on account of such intemperance. For while he had Deianira as his wife, he was joined to another through love, and was plotted against unintentionally by the former; 8.17 for she, having prepared a love potion and anointed her husband's tunic, sent it to him when he asked for it, and she hoped to win him over to herself, but she failed in what she hoped for; for that potion, having heated up the body of Heracles, enveloped it in a most grievous disease; but he, being in pain and not bearing the suffering, having built a pyre and laid himself upon it, received a fitting end to his life, for the practices of the one deified by you were not <worthy> of deification. 8.18 But nevertheless, though knowing these things—for the ancient writings teach these things—they no less called him savior and addressed him as averter of evil and attached "Lord Heracles" to their speeches; and you likewise pride yourselves on such words, thinking it sufficient for a show of culture to utter such little phrases. 8.19 And Apollodorus says that Asclepius was the son, according to some, of Arsinoe, but according to others, of Coronis, who secretly lay with Apollo after being forced, and having conceived and given birth, she exposed the infant, and he says that some hunters, finding it being nursed by a dog, took it and brought it to Chiron the Centaur, then he was raised there and trained in the science of medicine, and in Tricca first and in Epidaurus he gave proof of his 8. art. And so excellently, he says, was he educated and very diligently, that he not only healed the sick, but also raised some of the dead;

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τὰς θείας κομίζονται δωρεάς. Καὶ μερισθέντος τοῦ σώματος, ἀμέριστος ἡ χάρις μεμένηκεν, καὶ τὸ σμικρὸν ἐκεῖνο καὶ βραχύ τατον λείψανον τὴν ἴσην ἔχει δύναμιν τῷ μηδαμῇ μηδαμῶς διανεμηθέντι μάρτυρι· ἡ γὰρ ἐπανθοῦσα χάρις διανέμει τὰ δῶρα, τῇ πίστει τῶν προσιόντων τὴν φιλοτιμίαν μετροῦσα. Ὑμᾶς δὲ οὐδὲ ταῦτα πείθει τὸν τούτων ὑμνῆσαι Θεόν, ἀλλὰ γελᾶτε καὶ κωμῳδεῖτε τὸ τούτοις παρὰ πάντων προσφερόμενον γέρας καὶ μύσος ὑπολαμβάνετε τὸ πελάζειν τοῖς τάφοις. 8.12 Εἰ δὲ καὶ πάντες ἄνθρωποι τούτοις προσέπταιον, ἀλλ' οὖν Ἕλληνας μόνους νεμεσᾶν τοῖς οὕτω δρωμένοις οὐκ ἔδει· τούτων γάρ τοι αἱ χοαὶ καὶ τὰ ἐναγίσματα καὶ οἱ ἥρωες καὶ οἱ ἡμίθεοι καὶ οἱ θεοποιούμενοι ἄνθρωποι. Καὶ γὰρ τὸν Ἡρακλέα, ἄνθρωπον γεγονότα καὶ Ἀλκμήνης παῖδα καὶ Ἀμφιτρύωνος, καὶ θεὸν ἀπέφηναν, ὡς ἐνόμισαν, καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις θεοῖς ξυνηρίθμησαν. 8.13 Ὅτι δὲ καὶ ὁ Πλάτων Ἀμφιτρύωνος αὐτὸν οἶδεν υἱὸν καὶ οὐ τοῦ ∆ιός, ἀκούσατε δὴ αὐτοῦ ἐν τῷ Θεαιτήτῳ λέγοντος· "Ἀλλ' ἐπὶ πέντε καὶ εἴκοσι καταλόγῳ προγόνων σεμνυνομένων καὶ ἀναφερόντων εἰς Ἡρακλέα τὸν Ἀμφιτρύωνος ἄτοπα αὐτῷ φαίνεσθαι τῆς σμικρολογίας, ὅτι δὲ Ἀμφιτρύωνος εἰς τὸ ἄνω πέμπτος καὶ εἰκοστὸς ἦν, οἵα ξυνέβαινεν αὐτῷ τύχη, καὶ ὁ πεντηκοστὸς ἀπ' αὐτοῦ, γελᾷ οὐ δυναμένων λογίζεσθαί τε καὶ χαυνότητος 8.14 ἀνοήτου ψυχῆς ἀπαλλάττεσθαι." Καὶ Ἰσοκράτης δὲ ὁ ῥήτωρ ὧδέ φησιν· "Ζεὺς γὰρ Ἡρακλέα καὶ Τάνταλον γεννήσας, ὡς οἱ μῦθοι λέγουσι, καὶ πάντες πιστεύουσιν." Οὕτως ἐγέλων οἱ ξυνορᾶν ἱκανοὶ τὰ παρὰ τῶν ἄλλων μυθολογούμενα· ἀλλ' ὅμως ἀνθρώπῳ γε ὄντι καὶ Εὐρυσθεῖ δουλεύειν ἠναγκασμένῳ, καὶ νεὼς ἐδείμαντο καὶ βωμοὺς ἐδομήσαντο καὶ θυσίαις ἐτίμησαν καὶ ἑορτὰς ἀπεκλήρωσαν, οὐ Σπαρτιάται μόνοι καὶ Ἀθηναῖοι, ἀλλὰ καὶ 8.15 ξύμπασα ἡ Ἑλλὰς καὶ τῆς Εὐρώπης τὰ πλεῖστα. ∆ιέβη δὲ καὶ εἰς τὴν Ἀσίαν τῆς ἐξαπάτης ἡ νόσος· καὶ γὰρ καὶ ἐν Τύρῳ καὶ ἐν ἄλλαις πόλεσι παμπόλλους καὶ μεγίστους αὐτῷ σηκοὺς ᾠκο δόμησαν. Καὶ οὐ μόνον ἐτησίους ἀπένειμαν πανηγύρεις, ἀλλὰ καὶ τετραετηρικοῖς ἀγῶσιν ἐτίμησαν, καὶ ταῦτά γε ἄνδρα εἰδότες, καὶ ἄνδρα οὐ σώφρονα οὐδὲ φιλοσοφίαν ἠγαπηκότα, ἀλλ' ἀκολα 8.16 σίᾳ καὶ λαγνείᾳ ξυνεζηκότα. Ἵνα γὰρ τὴν ἄλλην αὐτοῦ πᾶσαν ἀκρασίαν παρῶ, φασὶν αὐτὸν ἐν μιᾷ νυκτὶ πεντήκοντα μιγῆναι παρθένοις, τὸν τρίτον καὶ δέκατον ἴσως ἀγωνισάμενον ἆθλον· ἀπόχρη δὲ καὶ τοῦτο δηλῶσαι πᾶσαν τὴν τοῦ βίου προαίρεσιν. Καὶ μέντοι καὶ τοῦ βίου τὸ τέλος διὰ τοιαύτην ἀκρασίαν πρὸ τῆς ὥρας ὑπέμεινεν. Ὁμόζυγα γὰρ ἔχων τὴν ∆ηϊάνειραν, ξυνήφθη μὲν ἄλλῃ δι' ἔρωτα, ὑπὸ δὲ τῆς προτέρας παρὰ γνώμην ἐπεβου 8.17 λεύθη· ἐρωτικὸν γὰρ αὕτη κατασκευάσασα φάρμακον καὶ χρίσασα τοῦ ἀνδρὸς τὸν χιτῶνα, πέπομφεν ᾐτηκότι, καὶ ἤλπισέ γε ἀγρεύ σειν πρὸς ἑαυτήν, διήμαρτε δὲ ὧν ἤλπισεν· ἐκθερμῆναν γὰρ ἐκεῖνο τὸ φάρμακον τοῦ Ἡρακλέους τὸ σῶμα παγχαλέπῳ περιέ βαλε νόσῳ· ὁ δὲ ἀλγυνόμενος καὶ μὴ φέρων τὸ πάθος, πυρὰν νήσας καὶ ἑαυτόν γε καταθείς, τοῦ βίου τὸ τέλος ἐδέξατο ἄξιόν γε, οὐ γὰρ <ἄξια> τῆς θεοποιΐας τὰ τοῦ παρ' ὑμῶν θεο 8.18 ποιηθέντος ἐπιτηδεύματα. Ἀλλ' ὅμως καὶ ταῦτα εἰδότες-ταῦτα γὰρ τὰ παλαιὰ διδάσκει ξυγγράμματα-, οὐδὲν ἧττον κἀκεῖνον σωτῆρα ἐκάλουν καὶ ἀλεξίκακον προσηγόρευον καὶ τὸ "Ἡράκλεις ἄναξ" τοῖς λόγοις προσέπλαττον· καὶ ὑμεῖς δὲ ὡσαύτως τοῖς τοιούτοις σεμνύνεσθε λόγοις, ἀποχρῆν εἰς παιδείας ἡγούμενοι περιφάνειαν τὸ τὰ τοιαῦτα ἐπιλέγειν ῥηματίσκια. 8.19 Καὶ τὸν Ἀσκληπιὸν δέ φησιν Ἀπολλόδωρος κατὰ μέν τινας Ἀρσινόης εἶναι υἱόν, κατὰ δὲ ἄλλους Κορωνίδος, λάθρα μὲν Ἀπόλλωνι ξυνελθεῖν βιασθείσης, κυησάσης δὲ καὶ τεκούσης καὶ ἐκθεμένης τὸ βρέφος, τοῦτο δὲ κυνηγέτας τινὰς εὑρηκότας ὑπὸ κυνὸς τρεφόμενον λαβεῖν καὶ κομίσαι λέγει Χείρωνι τῷ Κεν ταύρῳ, εἶτα ἐκεῖ τραφῆναί τε καὶ ἀσκηθῆναι τὴν ἰατρικὴν ἐπισ τήμην, ἐν Τρίκκῃ δὲ πρῶτον καὶ Ἐπιδαύρῳ δοῦναι πεῖραν τῆς 8. τέχνης. Οὕτω δὲ ἄκρως, φησίν, ἐπαιδεύθη καὶ μάλα γε σπου δαίως, ὡς μὴ μόνον τοὺς ἀρρωστοῦντας ἰᾶσθαι, ἀλλὰ καί τινας τῶν τετελευτηκότων ἐγείρειν·